I. Field of the Invention
This invention relates in general to a bookstand, and in particular to a bookstand having page retainer means projectable from an outwardly extending lower lip panel and movable toward a back panel to thereby maintain open and in place facing pages of an open book situated on the bookstand.
II. Description of the Prior Art
Present bookstands are available in a variety of designs depending upon the applicability of the situation in which a book is to be supported. For example, a library may provide a pedestal-type bookstand rising from the floor and upon which a book is placed, while a college student may have a desktop backboard against which an open book can lean. While present bookstands provide a site for book placement, they generally lack any type of provision for maintaining the book in an open position at a selected page. As most readers have experienced, many books tend to exhibit a "page-turning" proclivity whereby the book will not remain opened at the desired page. Instead, many times one to five pages or more seem to automatically turn, thus necessitating active page retention by the reader. One prior art bookstand provides a pair of spaced cylinders projecting upwardly from an outwardly projecting lower lip upon which a book resides. Although these cylinders are in front of the open pages of a book placed on the lip, the cylinders are not movable toward the open pages to thereby be closer to the pages for effective page retention. As a result, pages of a book that are not relatively close to a cylinder can still turn since they simply brush past the cylinder.
In view of the above, it is apparent that a bookstand that functions to retain open pages in their open configuration is needed. Accordingly, a primary object of the present invention is to provide a bookstand wherein integral page retainer means are movable toward open interfacing pages to maintain them in the open position.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a bookstand wherein the page retainer means are projectable from an outwardly projecting lip thereof and upon which a book is placed for reading.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a bookstand that is angularly adjustable to thereby position a book thereon at a comfortable angle according to a reader's needs.
These and other objects of the present invention will become apparent throughout the description thereof which now follows.